Tag Archives: series

Five TV Series You Should Start Watching

It may be hard to believe given this blog’s content but I actually watch more series than movies. I always try to start new ones although with the frequency that new shows start in the U.S. that isn’t as easy as it sounds.

So I figured I’d compile a list of five relatively new TV shows that I’m enjoying the most and that you should start downloading as soon as possible. The TV shows that are not eligible on this list are, but not exclusive to, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, Dexter, The Vampire Diaries, The Good Wife, Once Upon a Time, etc…

This list is in order.

Revenge TV Show seriess poster

5 – Revenge

The show chronicles the story of Emily Clarke as she seeks out revenge on the people who framed her father and threw him in jail for terrorist charges. The show has its ups and downs but its ups being very exciting. This isn’t a story about forgiveness, the show opens up, this is a story about revenge. And such sweet revenge it is. Revenge is currently airing its second season.

Nashville TV SHow series poster

4 – Nashville

You don’t need to like country music to enjoy Nashville because the show isn’t about the music only. It’s about the music business in Nashville, about women trying to make it in a patriarchal music genre. It’s also about politics and family dynamics. All in all, the show encompasses a lot of elements and is always enjoyable. It has many characters so you are bound to relate to one of them. I also highly enjoy the music it offers every week so Nashville entertains my ears as well. Nashville is currently airing its first season.

Scandal TV Show series poster

3 – Scandal

An average first season of only 7 episodes gave way to an absolutely brilliant (so far) second season. Scandal is an absolutely gripping show about things that go on behind closed doors in Washington up from the White House down to more irrelevant people. Conspiracy theorist-lovers will absolutely dig this. I think it’s a great TV show because of the way it manages to weave many things together and make it look absolutely normal. Scandal is currently airing its second season.

Suits USA TV SHow series poster

2 – Suits

You’ve probably seen many legal dramas over the years. But Suits is probably the most interesting of the bunch. It has the coolest bromance on TV amid a highly competitive atmosphere of lawyers. While the legal aspect of the show is prominent and highly interesting, it is the interactions between its different characters that will keep you hooked. Suits has spawned the viral catchphrase: what would Harvey do? You’ll start wondering this as you watch it. Suits will reprise its second season next Thursday, January 17th.

American Horror Story Asylum TV Show series

1 – American Horror Story: Asylum

Where do I start? After a not-so-shabby first season, I didn’t think I’d even start the second season of American Horror Story which has nothing to do with the first one. So you can start this without worries. But how mistaken was I in thinking that. Using a lot of the same actors of the first season, the show brings it episode for episode. Great direction, extremely thrilling story and characters that you either love or love to hate – all of them will keep you transfixed, as well as some absolutely brilliant acting performances by the likes of Jessica Lange who has won a Golden Globe and Emmy for her performance in the first season. There’s probably few other TV shows airing right now that can rival American Horror Story: Asylum in intensity. I don’t find it scary but it definitely keeps you at the edge of your seat. Hollywood should take notes. This is how you do horror. AHS is currently airing its second season.

Dear Lebanon, Who The Hell Is Ruby?

Perhaps it’s Medical School life finally catching up with me and keeping me out of many loops but there’s something I don’t get – why is everyone fascinated by someone/something called Ruby?

A few days ago, I was home while my mom and a few of her friends were having coffee. I was unconsciously listening in on the conversation when they started to discuss a woman named Ruby and how “not good” she was. I suppose using the word they used would be inappropriate here. But you get the drift.

I figured Ruby must be someone from my hometown. That’s enough to get me not interested. I’m not big on gossiping especially when it’s about people I don’t know as is the case with almost everyone in Ebrine.

Then I went to Beirut to visit some people who had nothing to do with my hometown. They were also talking about Ruby, using the exact same terminology I had heard before. It couldn’t be a coincidence. No – I refused to be ignorant anymore.

So I did some asking.

It turns out Ruby is a TV show. Yes, a TV show that people are obsessing about en masse. I decided to shrug it off as another Lebanese “it” thing that will soon wear off. How bad could Ruby-mania be? Then I found out my brother, who never – ever – watches such things, is actually tuning in every day to watch Ruby. Perhaps it’s because a good friend of his, Cynthia Khalife, has a role in the series as the Lebanese sister of a Syrian doctor. It could also be that my brother is tuning in to stare at Cyrine Abdel Nour. Who wouldn’t?

When it comes to me, I think the biggest problem Lebanese TV shows and series have is their script and to a lesser extent the acting with the former influencing the latter greatly. In Ruby’s case, the script has been imported from Mexico and translated into a Lebanese-Egyptian-Syrian version.

Is the series any good? Perhaps so. But have we gotten so unoriginal that we can’t come up with our own ideas? What’s next? Will they import Desperate Housewives now that it ended? How about we start our own medical drama à la Grey’s Anatomy while we’re at it?

Either way, I got a glimpse of Cyrine Abdel Nour’s – umm – behind? in Ruby today…. I now understand what the fuss is about.

Pottermore

Anything involving Harry Potter and JK Rowling has the power to take me back to when I was a giddy fifteen year old waiting on Harry Potter’s latest installment.

Well, it looks like our favorite author is back with something related to the epic series: Pottermore.

No one has any idea what it’s about. Everything is wrapped up in a thick shroud of secrecy, in pure Rowling fashion. But Pottermore has a website that you can visit. There’s basically nothing there but it’s still something, right?

There’s also a YouTube page which sets the countdown as of now to 6 days and 18 hours until the revelation of what Pottermore is.

Moreover, Pottermore’s twitter account revealed the following coordinates:  51.530377,-0.123259, which when plugged into this website: Secret Street View, take you to a clue regarding Pottermore. Hint: zoom into the street to find out what the clue is.

Are you excited Potterheads? I know I am. And most importantly, does anyone know what Pottermore might be?

I, for one, think it might be something related to the Harry Potter encyclopedia JK Rowling announced she wanted to write.